Questions tagged [experimental-technique]
filling in the unspecified details of elegant-sounding descriptions of experimental methods.
3
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2answers
78 views
Torricelli's law doesn't seem to apply in an experiment. Why could this be? What is going on?
For physics class we've done this experiment where we would measure the speed of the water escaping from a water bottle through a hole in a side of it. We would calculate the speed through kinematics ...
0
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1answer
52 views
How can one experimentally measure the velocity of water flowing through a pipe?
I am planning to investigate the effect of bend curvature of a pipe on velocity of water. For this, I will need to find the velocity of water through various pipe bends. Would placing an object in the ...
0
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0answers
17 views
Porous nanostructure in TGA and DSC
How does the porosity in porous nanostructures, such as mesoporous silica, influence the observed response in Thermal Gravimetry Analysis (TGA) vs Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) thermograms?
1
vote
1answer
46 views
What is the most efficient way to pour a liquid through a funnel?
Be it in cooking or an experiment, when transferring liquid from one container to another using a funnel should you:
(a) pour it all straight into the funnel, filling it up and waiting for the liquid ...
0
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1answer
17 views
Strain gauge vs linear variable displacement transducer
For measuring deformation experiments, it seems that strain gauges and linear variable displacement transducers (LVDT) are commonly used. If the material exhibits geometric linearity, then couldn't we ...
0
votes
1answer
62 views
Measure temperature of a heater wire
I would like to measure the temperature of a heating wire (tungsten) that's wrapped around my sample.
Does anyone have a better idea than using a infrared thermometer, which has relatively low ...
1
vote
2answers
53 views
Why are gradient and graphs used in labs? [closed]
This may seem like a redundant question but I was wondering why gradient calculations are preferred when calculating a value by experiment as opposed to just plugging in raw values me getting an ...
1
vote
1answer
38 views
The uncertainty of a toy car's measured average speed
Suppose I have a battery-powered toy car, and I am told to design an experiment which would allow me to determine the average speed of that toy car over, say, a meter, and to account for experimental ...
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0answers
49 views
How to demonstrate the Photoelectric effect?
I’m looking for a simple experiment to present (as an extra) to my class regarding the photoelectric effect but I don’t have many materials. From my understanding when UV light is incident on a ...
2
votes
1answer
55 views
Turning off an inductor: Experimental problems
I am trying to measure the current in dependence of time in turning on and off an inductor.
If I choose an inductor with low inductivity (36 mH) it works for turning on (almost) as expected, but for ...
3
votes
1answer
54 views
How does one actually 'fire an electron'?
As a mathematician, I have practically zero experience and knowledge of experimental methods. Recently, learning about some famous experiments in the history of quantum physics, I heard about an ...
0
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1answer
74 views
Significant figures in a practical experimental problem [duplicate]
Here is a question that combines uncertainties in measurements and significant figures.
Consider the following results to measure the value of g:
$$g={9.7,9.8,9.7,10.0,10.1,10.3}$$
Then to four ...
0
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0answers
13 views
Noise reduction approaches in optical spectral measurement
I am using an optical spectrometer to measure some surfaces in the visible, and since the signal is quite noisy I wondering what would be the best way to reduce the noise.
In particular, are there ...
-1
votes
2answers
140 views
Methods to convert nitrogen nuclei to oxygen nuclei?
Are there any "safe" method that allows converting the nitrogen into oxygen?
There's Ernest Rutherford that uses alpha particles aimed at the nitrogen to create oxygen and hydrogen.
But are there ...
0
votes
1answer
162 views
How to find out the wavelength for the blue led diode?
I need your help as I am stuck and I dont know where to start. I have got four blue leds diode that come with dark blue led lights that I really want to get the same led colours for my 3 fans, but I ...
2
votes
4answers
67 views
How are high-energy detectors able to to distinguish between $m_{e}$ and $m_{\mu}$?
I had a teacher pose this interesting question yesterday:
Suppose you're running a high-energy scattering experiment at the LHC. For concreteness, let's suppose it's a 2 to 2 scattering event which ...
6
votes
0answers
99 views
How to cleave a perovskite single-crystal in vacuum?
I am trying to cleave the lead-halide perovskite in vacuum to study its intrinsic electronic properties using photoelectron spectroscopy, since it is difficult to remove surface adsorption without ...
1
vote
1answer
45 views
Phase-shifting by Acousto-Optic modulators
I am working on a project where I need to be able to introduce a phase-shift to a light pulse, without any mechanical parts involved. One of the options is to use an acousto-optic modulator:
...
7
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1answer
245 views
What are the “x” marks in a bubble chamber image?
Upon looking at a decent number of bubble chamber images I noticed an x shape . What particles are producing these trails?
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1answer
29 views
Historic method to produce cophasal illumination before lasers?
In a bunch of old papers, written before lasers, the authors often refer to illumination with the same characteristics as a laser: single spatial mode and temporally lockstep.
For example in: On the ...
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0answers
24 views
How to pass a fiber optic through an aluminum laser enclosure?
This is a very technical question which I think is not typical on this site but it is for experimental physics so I'm trying it out because I can't find a better stack exchange
Problem
I'm trying to ...
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votes
1answer
53 views
X-ray: Observation of absorption edge [closed]
So I am working on this experiment on X-ray and kinda stuck on this last and following section.
I have done the measurements and plotted the graph as required in 1. and 2. See below,
However, I ...
-1
votes
1answer
36 views
X-ray: Aluminium mass absorption co-efficient vs photon energy [closed]
I am doing this experiment on X-rays and I have to do this part of measuring aluminium mass absorption coefficient vs photon's energy. I have done all the work but now stuck in the last step (step 4). ...
2
votes
0answers
75 views
Exclusion limits on particle dark matter
I'm trying to make sense on how the upper limits of the cross section of particle dark matter (WIMPs) are computed, like in the figure below. This is taken from an article on dark matter searches.
...
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0answers
20 views
What is the $\eta$-reflection method to estimate the background by CMS?
When I used the "Fastjet Package" to reconstruct jet and calculate the jet-shape, I need to estimate the background. I saw from paper:
"The η-reflection method as the CMS experiment did, i.e., ...
5
votes
1answer
67 views
How do the LIGO team arrive at the number of round trips in the laser arm etalon?
The quoted number of laser beam round trips in the arm cavity for LIGO on the MIT site is 280 times. How did they arrive such a number? Since the laser frequency is stabilized to less than 1 Hz, the ...
1
vote
0answers
48 views
Operational definition of quantum states [closed]
I came across a basic textbook problem. I am clear with the math, but I am not clear with how it is connected with experimental facts.Before stating the actual problem.
Let me quote Karl Krauss from ...
1
vote
1answer
33 views
What are Chopper Spectrometers and how are they different from Triple-Axis Spectrometers?
I've been reading about inelastic neutron scattering experiments. Recently encountered these two techniques. Can anybody please tell me why/when are these two techniques used?
0
votes
1answer
32 views
control of accommodative and vergence demand with mirror stereoscope
I am setting up a mirror stereoscope for use in psychophysical experiments. The stereoscope will be composed of two beamsplitters equidistant from two computer displays, with the participant sitting ...
0
votes
1answer
44 views
Determining Threshold Voltage and Plateau from experimental data
I’ve been trying to figure out how to interpret the following data from the Geiger muller tube
There are only seven data points. Where does the plateau begin? Has the data collection begun after the ...
3
votes
1answer
212 views
Confusion in the Michelson-Morley experiment about beam-splitter vs compensator
From what I know of the original experiment, the beam-splitter was a half-silvered mirror, and one of the paths had a compensator in the form of a glass plate.
My questions are: (1) Since the glass ...
1
vote
2answers
192 views
Torsional Pendulum
Hi from one of my lab classes I had to calculate the moment of inertia
of an object by turning it into a torsional pendulum, and measuring
its period with a known constant A, using the following ...
0
votes
2answers
68 views
Not seeing a diffraction pattern, what could be the cause?
Basically took a piece of paper, cut out a small slit with some scissors, and held my phone's flashlight right on the slit. What could be causing the lack of diffraction?
Does the fact that the light ...
4
votes
3answers
145 views
How to detect a wormhole?
Question
A wormhole is a possible solution to Einstein field equations. As far as I understand, the fact that they are a possible solution does not mean they actually exist.
Are we looking for ...
0
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0answers
78 views
Magnetic field measured in a rotating frame
Consider that we have a magnet and a magnetometer (a fluxgate magnetometer with a single coil), standing still as shown in fig 1.
In fig 1, the magnetic field measured at the axis (z1) of the ...
0
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0answers
37 views
What do R-squared values and percentage error indicate about the method of an experiment?
In an experiment, I plotted the data on a graph, and the R-squared value was 0.9996. I then calculated the percentage error, which was 1.47%. I know a high R-squared value indicates low random error, ...
2
votes
1answer
134 views
How to measure the electrostatic field outside of a battery?
The eletric field of a battery should look roughly like that:
Assuming $1,5\,\mathrm{V}$ voltage and a distance of $5\cdot 10^{-2}\,\mathrm{m}$, the mean electric field should be in the order of ...
3
votes
1answer
282 views
Laser beam alignment: best practices
I have to build a complex optical setup consisting of many mirrors, lenses, beam-splitters, multiple wavelengths lasers to be coupled, etc.
I am looking for the "best practices" to efficiently (and ...
1
vote
1answer
33 views
Dalitz plot of a top quark decay?
What would a Dalitz plot of a top quark decay look like? I haven't been able to find any in the literature, which is dominated by LHCb hadron spectroscopy, at much smaller masses than the top... ...
1
vote
1answer
40 views
Can I measure light intensity using only .jpg pictures?
I have two pictures. On first one can see a lamp shining straight into my smartphone's objective and on the second picture one can see the same lamp but covered with a piece of paper.
Can I use those ...
0
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0answers
134 views
Why do we calculate frequency of tuning fork for longitudinal and transverse arrangement in Melde's Experiment?
Does tuning fork produces both longitudinal as well as transverse waves? Why do we determine frequency of tuning fork for both longitudinal and transverse arrangements?
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1answer
60 views
How could we detect a dark matter particle?
If dark matter only interacts via gravity, how is detection of a dark matter particle proposed? Don't current particle detectors rely on the other (non-gravitational) interactions?
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1answer
34 views
Looking for a video of experiment with two snug-fitting glass tubes
R. Penrose in his book "Cycles of Time: An Extraordinary New View of the Universe" describes the following experiment:
There are the two snug-fitting glass tubes and viscous liquid between them, with ...
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0answers
39 views
How is the electron $g$-factor determined?
I found a description of the experiments at CERN where a Penning trap is used to to determine the g-factor but I could not find the value of the radius of the circle of precession, nor could I (surely ...
0
votes
1answer
44 views
Nuclear physics timing experiment without Amplifier
I am quite new in nuclear physics instrumentation. So my question may seem silly.
We are performing timing experiment in our lab to obtain better time resolution of NaI(Tl) detectors in conjunction ...
0
votes
1answer
115 views
Why does anyone take Cold Fusion seriously? [duplicate]
The original Pons/Fleischmann experiment was deeply flawed, and it seems the same errors are reproduced in followup experiments these past 30 or so years. The Pons/Fleischmann apparatus was not ...
0
votes
1answer
747 views
What is the reason for using Mercury Neon or Argon in Franck and Hertz experiment?
In the book of Modern Physics Experiment by Melissinos, it is stated at page 13 that
Another important point is that in principle tbe experiment must be
performed with a monatomic gas; since if a ...
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0answers
41 views
Why did Galileo use a ramp instead of a rope/pulley in his famous experiment?
If I understand correctly, one can derive an equivalent relation between distance the body falls and time, by using a rope/pulley system too.
Conceptually it may be easier and perhaps more natural. ...
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1answer
142 views
How can one determine the charge of $e$ in Milikan's oil drop experiment
Inspired from this answer, I have an question about Milikan's oil drop experiment:
if we have a set of data, say $q_1, q_2, ..., q_n$, since those $g_i$'s have some error bars, we cannot directly ...
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vote
3answers
48 views
Manometer physics? How to keep nozzles from draining?
Picture two liquid spray nozzles spaced vertically by some distance. Both nozzles are connected via flexible tubing to a single valve via a tee. Once the nozzle lines are full of fluid how can i ...
